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Profiles
Contents of this chapter
What is a learner profile?
Learning preferences and styles
Types of intelligence
Influences based on gender, culture and personality
Interests
Gathering information for learner profiles
3
Inventories
Learner preference inventories
Reading inventories
Social inventories
Interest inventories
Assessment information
Recording learner profiles 23
What is a class profile?
Overall academic profile
Subject or unit specific class profile
Literacy or numeracy class profile
Using learner and class profiles
Developing your own learner profile
Tool 1: 20 questions about me
Tool 2: Interest inventory
Tool 3: A Reading interview
Tool 4: Reading attitudes interview
Tool 5: Reading stategies survey
Tool 6: What works for me inventory
Tool 7: Getting along with others inventory
Part 1Making a Difference | Meeting diverse learning needs with differentiated instruction
To effectively meet the learning needs of students, classroom teachers
must begin with an understanding of the needs of the learners, both
collectively as a classroom unit and as individual students.
Learning styles typically refer to how a student tends to use senses to learn.
Rita and Ken Dunn (1987) identify three types of sensory learning styles.
Closely related to learning styles are thinking styles. These typically describe
how a student organizes information and solves problems. Based on the work of
Gregorc (1982), Judith Dodge presents four general thinking styles.1
Concrete random thinkersare creative, make intuitive leaps, enjoy
unstructured problem solving, like choices, are self-motivated, see the big
picture and not the details.
Concrete sequential thinkerslike order, respond to step-by-step
instruction, enjoy learning with concrete materials, attend to details, work
within a time line, appreciate structure.
Abstract random thinkersare guided by emotion and interest, seek
environments that are active, busy and unstructured, like to discuss ideas
and interact with others.
Learning preferences and learning styles develop and change over time in
response to ongoing experiences. One style or preference is not better than
another. What does matter is the fit between the individual learner and the learning
task and/or material. The way in which we respond to different preferences and
styles can vary across tasks and situations. For example, one learner may prefer
to study on his or her own at home, but prefer to work with a small study group in
the classroom.
Individuals also differ in the strengths of their preferences and styles. Some
learners also can shift easily between different kinds of learning, while others
cannot be as flexible.
The goal of a learner profile is to find out as much as possible about how an
individual learns. The goal is not to label students as certain kinds of learners
but rather to help them develop multiple pathways for learning. When working
on unfamiliar and/or challenging tasks, students will be more confident and
motivated if they are able to work in their areas of strength.
1. Adapted from Judith Dodge, Differentiation in Action (New York, NY: Scholastic, 2005), p. 11.
Part 1Making a Difference | Meeting diverse learning needs with differentiated instruction
Students need frequent opportunities to work in their preferred sensory and
thinking styles. At the same time, it also is critical to ensure that students have
learning opportunities that stretch them beyond their preferences and allow them
to develop a wider repertoire of learning skills. This will help them become more
confident learners who can work through challenges.
Types of intelligence
Another framework for reflecting on how individuals learn is examining
different types of intelligence. An intelligence can be defined as a brain-based
predisposition to excel in a particular area. Howard Gardner (1994) identified
eight intelligences that individuals possess in varying combinations. Thomas
Armstrong (1994) came up with student-friendly terms for each intelligence:
verbal-linguistic intelligence (or word smarts)
logical-mathematical intelligence (or number smarts)
interpersonal intelligence (or people smarts)
intrapersonal intelligence (or self smarts)
spatial intelligence (or picture smarts)
musical-rhythmic intelligence (or music smarts)
bodily-kinesthetic intelligence (or body smarts)
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naturalistic intelligence (or nature smarts).
Similarly, Robert Sternberg (1985) identified the following three intelligences that
he suggests exist in varying combinations and strengths in each individual.
Analytic intelligence (or schoolhouse intelligence) involves the linear
type of learning found most often in schools.
Practical intelligence (or contextual intelligence) involves seeing how
and why things work as people actually use them.
Creative intelligence (or problem-solving intelligence) involves making
new connections and seeking innovation.
Sternberg argues that recognizing where each students strengths lie and
teaching to those strengths, particularly when introducing a new concept, can
maximize student learning. At the same time, your goal should be to develop all
intelligences as fully as possible in every student, so that he or she can succeed in
a variety of contexts.
Interests
Students are most motivated and engaged when they are learning about something
they are interested in. Having areas of interest identified as part of learner profiles
helps you to regularly consider these interests in your instructional planning to
vary projects, themes and examples used in your instruction.
S tudents often know which ways of learning are most effective for them and
what things get in the way of their success. Listening to what students have
to say about their own learning can be a great starting point for creating learner
profiles. Inventories and other assessment tools also may provide you with
valuable information.
Inventories 27
Consider the following types of inventories. Samples of these inventories are
included at the end of this chapter. Additional strategies and tools for getting to
know your student are available in the Alberta Education resource, Building on
Success: Helping Students make Transitions from Year to Year (2006), available at
http://education.alberta.ca/media/352661/build.pdf.
Part 1Making a Difference | Meeting diverse learning needs with differentiated instruction
Reading inventories are typically given at the beginning of the year. They provide
an opportunity for students to share information about the kinds of reading they
enjoy, as well as their understanding of themselves as readers. Used again at the
end of the year, a reading inventory can reveal how student perceptions have
changed and can generate new information to share with the next years teachers.
See Tool 3: A Reading Interview, Tool 4: Reading Attitudes Interview, Tool 5:
Reading Stategies Survey.
Helping students identify and understand how they learn best and how they can
use this information can help students learn-to-learn throughout their lives.
Caleb
The class profile is developed at the beginning of the school year or semester. It
is a tool for recording and summarizing information gathered through diagnostic
assessment that happens prior to instruction and through formative assessment
that happens during instruction. For additional information on assessment, see
Chapter 4: Differentiated Assessment. Class profiles can be organized in a few
different ways. The class profile helps you:
collect, sort, categorize and summarize classroom data
identify patterns of similarities and differences among students
plan assessment and differentiated instruction on a daily basis
form flexible groupings
monitor student progress by noting results of ongoing assessments
share information among educators and parents.
Part 1Making a Difference | Meeting diverse learning needs with differentiated instruction
Overall academic profile
An overall academic profile for a class can be compiled in a chart for quick
reference. This type of profile indicates, at a glance, any current assessment
information for each student, additional supports a student requires or is receiving,
and other relevant information as determined by you or the school. An overall
academic profile might look like this.
Reading level 1 2 3
1 below
2 grade
3 above
Math level 2 2 2
1 below
2 grade
30 3 above
IPP Y N N
Y/N
A class profile for a language arts class might start like this.
Part 1Making a Difference | Meeting diverse learning needs with differentiated instruction
Using learner and class profiles
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T o maximize the value of student learner profiles, you may want to better
understand your own learning preferences and how they influence your
planning and teaching.
You can use the information and inventories in this resource to think about
your own learning. Other adult-focused inventories related to learning and
communicating are readily available on the Internet, and many are free.
Take time to do some self-reflection and ask yourself questions about your own
learning strengths, how they have changed over time, and what the implications
are for teaching and learning with your students. Consider questions such as the
following.
What are my learning strengths?
How have I developed these particular strengths over the years?
How do my strengths and preferences affect my teaching?
What types of intelligences and preferences do I want to more consciously
incorporate into my teaching?
Developing your own learner profile puts you in a better position to see when
student learning is being hindered by your preferences. For example, a teacher
who is a concrete random thinker likely enjoys unstructured problem-solving
situations, opportunities for divergent thinking and big picture ideas. If all of his
or her instruction and classroom organization reflects these preferences, those
students in the class who are concrete sequential thinkers (e.g., who like order,
step-by-step instruction and detail) will most likely find learning difficult.
Recognizing and respecting the differences that exist between you and your
students is the first step to intentionally adjusting instruction and valuing different
kinds of learning in the classroom.
As you find out more about your own learning strengths and preferences, it is
useful to share this information with your students. Talk with them about how
knowing this information will help you to learn and teach more effectively.
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Part 1Making a Difference | Meeting diverse learning needs with differentiated instruction
Tool 1: 20 Questions About Me2
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5. What sport do I like to play?
2. Reproduced from Alberta Education, Building on Success: Helping Students make Transitions from Year
to Year (Edmonton, AB: Alberta Education, 2006), pp. 2627.
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16. What makes me smile?
Part 1Making a Difference | Meeting diverse learning needs with differentiated instruction
Tool 2: Interest Inventory3
3. Reproduced from Alberta Education, Building on Success: Helping Students make Transitions from Year
to Year (Edmonton, AB: Alberta Education, 2006), p. 28.
Name
4. Adapted with permission from Patricia Pavelka, Create Independent Learners: Teacher-tested Strategies
for all Ability Levels (Peterborough, NH: Crystal Springs Books, 1999), Reading Inventory.
Part 1Making a Difference | Meeting diverse learning needs with differentiated instruction
Tool 4: Reading Attitudes Interview5
Name Date
6. If you knew someone who was having trouble reading, how would you help
him or her?
5. Reproduced with permission from a form by Christa Svenson, Lawton Junior High School, Edmonton
Public Schools, Edmonton, AB.
Name Date
6. Reproduced with permission from Edmonton Public Schools, AISI Middle Literacy Project
(Edmonton, AB: Edmonton Public Schools, 2001).
Part 1Making a Difference | Meeting diverse learning needs with differentiated instruction
Reading Strategies Survey (continued)
40
18. What skills or strategies do you need to continue to work on?
Name Date
C. In the classroom:
What seat in the classroom works best for me?
What do I read best from?
____ chalkboard ____ overhead ____ projector ____ chart paper
____ my own copy ____ interactive white board
Does the colour of ink (or chalk) make a difference?
Does the type of print; e.g., printed, handwritten or typed, make a difference?
7. Reproduced from Alberta Education, Make School Work for You: A Resource for Junior and Senior High
Students who want to be More Successful Learners (Edmonton, AB: Alberta Education, 2001), pp. 8586.
Part 1Making a Difference | Meeting diverse learning needs with differentiated instruction
What Works for Me Inventory (continued)
D. Rank in order from 1 (being the most useful) to 12 (being the least useful) which type
of learning experiences work best for me:
___ teacher explains aloud
___ teacher writes directions on the board
___ teacher does example on the board
___ teacher asks another student to demonstrate
___ teacher asks all students to try a sample at their desks
___ I read the directions while the teacher reads them
___ I read the directions on my own
___ teacher shows me at my desk
___ another student explains a second time and answers my questions
___ I watch what another student does
___ I try it on my own and then check with teacher
Name Date
8. Reproduced from Alberta Education, Make School Work for You: A Resource for Junior and Senior High
Students who want to be more Successful Learners (Edmonton, AB: Alberta Education, 2001), pp. 9596.
Part 1Making a Difference | Meeting diverse learning needs with differentiated instruction
Getting Along with Others Inventory (continued)
Solving problems
I use all my skills to build a
positive working relationship with
partners.
I let partners know when I think we
have a problem.
I am willing to make a new plan
and start over.
If necessary, Ill share my concerns
with the teacher.
Getting connected
I participate in at least one
extracurricular activity each term.